The new superb blog Fred2Blue has the details:
Several days after House Speaker Bill Howell and Stafford Commisioner of the Revenue Scott Mayausky ... were practically beating down the door to the Clerk's office (the sheriff was nearly called to the scene, not that it would have mattered since the deputies are all hard-core Republicans) trying to overturn Patricia Mancini's election to the Stafford Co. School Board, they've gone to plan B and will now sue for a recount. Republican Price Jett Jr. ran a valiant write-in campaign against Mancini, who was endorsed by the Stafford Education Association, but ultimately came up just short as Patricia received 51% of the vote. The vote has been certified and School Board Member-elect Mancini is scheduled to be sworn in on Dec. 12.I'm not sure about the merits of the lawsuit. And I'm often a proponent of counting every vote (and recounting if necessary) -- and we're only talking about 57 votes dividing the two. But the standard for finding additional votes for a write-in candidate sounds quite difficult. So, is this a just lawsuit? Or is this just a delay tactic like Fred2Blue claims?
[UPDATE from the comments: "Having spoken with members of the Election Board, I can say that they bent over backwards to give Mr. Jett votes based on the principle of "identifying voter intent". I can also say that Mr. Mayausky and Mr. Jett were informed that even if every write-in vote were counted for Mr. Jett, he still would not win. And I can also say that in the unlikely event a recount is ordered, a more stringent set of requirements will be in effect and Mr. Jett will actually lose votes. The suit is baseless and a waste of the taxpayers' money. Mr. Jett did not win, and cannot win."]
Having spoken with members of the Election Board, I can say that they bent over backwards to give Mr. Jett votes based on the principle of "identifying voter intent". I can also say that Mr. Mayausky and Mr. Jett were informed that even if every write-in vote were counted for Mr. Jett, he still would not win. And I can also say that in the unlikely event a recount is ordered, a more stringent set of requirements will be in effect and Mr. Jett will actually lose votes.
The suit is baseless and a waste of the taxpayers' money. Mr. Jett did not win, and cannot win.
This lawsuit, however, just proves how partisan our school board has become. Robert Belman, the School Board Chair, is definitely more than disappointed about Jett's loss because now he won't rule the roost anymore. Mancini is moderate and will put the children before politics. In the recent past, Robert Belman has worked with the Republican members of the Board of Supervisors to actually cut needed funding to our schools. Stafford County schools have felt the impact with over-crowded classes due to lack of funds to hire new teachers and increased fees paid by students and their families.
I talked to a prominent Stafford Dem the other day and I commented to him that they couldn't ALL be Republicans...but he responded to me by saying, yeah they are actually.